“What is your expansion revenue strategy?”

What they're really asking

Can existing customers grow? Investors rarely care about the question on its own. They're testing whether you know your numbers cold, whether your assumptions are honest, and whether you can explain them simply.

How to answer, step by step

1. Show current expansion MRR as % of opening MRR.
2. Name the upsell levers: seats, tiers, add-ons.
3. Show net revenue retention and its target.

An example answer

Expansion adds about 1% of MRR a month today. Net revenue retention is about 86%, and our target is 100%+ through seat-based pricing.

Figures are from Loopdesk, the fictional SaaS company in our sample files. Swap in your own numbers and keep the structure.

The answer that loses trust

Where the proof lives

Before the meeting, find the number behind your answer. In our workbooks it lives in: NRR & GRR. If you can open that tab and point to it, the follow-up question is easy.